Tottenham Hotspur, facing offensive woes due to injuries and international call-ups, is looking for realistic targets.
The Telegraph reported on Tottenham’s plans for the winter transfer window on Tuesday (Jan. 30). Spurs have been plagued by a string of injuries. The latest is Rodrigo Bentancur. The midfielder, who was the centerpiece of Tottenham’s midfield until last season, was ruled out for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and damaged meniscus against Leicester City. He returned to training but did not feature in any official matches. He returned to action as a substitute against Crystal Palace in the 10th round of the season. In his first appearance on the pitch in eight months, Bentancur showed flashes of his pre-injury form as Spurs won 2-1.
Bentancur’s return to the starting lineup at a difficult time for the club was welcomed by the Spurs faithful as he continued to improve his fitness. Against Aston Villa, Bentancur started and then went down again. Spurs took the lead in the 22nd minute through a Lo Celso goal. Ollie Watkins scored a goal that was disallowed for offside, and as Spurs breathed a sigh of relief, Bentancur went down. It was Cash who made the tackle. Cash, who brought down Matt Doherty in the 2021-22 season, is a right-back with a penchant for rough tackles. Bentancur was unable to get up and limped off.
Alasdair Gold, a reporter for Football London, wrote: “Bentancur has been confirmed to have ruptured ankle ligaments against Aston Villa and will not return until February next year. He was making his first start since returning from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in February last year when he picked up the injury again.” Bentancur being ruled out until next February has thrown a wrench into Spurs’ plans.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Oliver Skipp could have left in the winter transfer window. With Bentancur, Tottenham could have sold both players and earned a transfer fee, which would have disrupted their plans. With the Africa Cup of Nations coming up in January, Yves Bissouma and Pape Mattharsar will be out of action. The midfield is torn apart, and without Bentancur, we won’t be able to sell Hojbjerg or the skip. James Maddison is also currently injured.
“Hojbjerg has attracted interest from Juventus, Atletico Madrid and Ajax,” says the Telegraph. Bentancur’s injury means we can’t sell him until at least February. The same goes for Skip. Tottenham are facing a serious midfield problem at the moment.”
He also talked about targets, and Jota was mentioned. Jota is a Portuguese winger from Benfica. After being a bench player at Benfica, he was loaned out to Real Valladolid. Upon his return, he was loaned to Celtic, where he scored seven goals and provided eight assists in 24 Scottish Premiership games. He also had two goals and two assists in five games in the UEFA Europa League (UEL). After completing his move to Celtic, he soared.
Last season, Jota set career highs with 11 goals and 11 assists in 33 league games. He went from strength to strength under Postecoglou. He won both Scottish domestic titles and was part of the Domestic Treble. Jota was rumored to be on his way to the PL, but a Saudi Arabian recruitment frenzy brought him to Al Ittihad, where he played alongside Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante.
After moving to Al Ittihad, Jota was left out of the squad. The Saudi professional league only allows eight foreigners, and with Benzema, Kante, and Luis Felipe all arriving at once, Jota was left out. Naturally, Jota was furious that he couldn’t play in Saudi Arabia’s domestic league and immediately sought a transfer, but it didn’t happen.
He is expected to leave Saudi Arabia in the winter transfer window. Tottenham will target Jota His arrival would give Spurs a bit of breathing room. With injuries to Manor Solomon, Ivan Perisic, and Michy Batshuayi, and the loss of Son Heung-min to the AFC Asian Cup next January, recruitment is essential. The Telegraph reports that “Tottenham are keen to sign Jota on loan for the rest of the season in the winter transfer window. Jota, who played under Postecoglou at Celtic, has not settled well at the Al Ittihad. His arrival could free up Dejan Krzysztof Kuluczewski to play in midfield.”